It's already the end of July. It's been such a wild ride of a year. Today we stopped by Menards to get some stuff and I wandered through the sad remains of their plants. Everything is clearance priced. We picked up a few little mosquito plants. They'll be put in by the side door (at the new house) where there's such a mosquito problem that the door is unusable. Last time we went out I left the thyme, rosemary, basil and catnip plants out there in hopes they'd help too. It's not a very sunny space (hence the mosquito problem), but I'm up to try just about any natural remedy.

Today I gender-checked all four of the three-week-old litters. The O, P, and R litters all got names. We're still discussing the Q litter. They're too cute for words. Seriously, they're adorable.

I figure this must be the cutest bunny ever to exist. I'd like to snuggle with him all the time. He's fluffy, and pudgy, and soft. He's one of Caduci Mook's kits, so he will be big and have floppy ears.

Some potential names we've thrown in the ring for the Q litter include Quetzal, Q (character from Star Trek), Quiche, and Quiddich. I like Quimby too (Inspector Gadget reference). Maybe Quince? I'll have to run them by #2 since these are his babies. He's going to have to pick a price for them soon too.

Today, after much debate, we decided to let #5 keep Neelix as his very own bunny. We feel that letting him keep this bunny will be good for him. He's not good with change (thank you Aspergers), and when he said he didn't want to sell Neelix my heart broke. We've had dozens of bunnies, and he's petted and held most of them, and he's never asked to keep one. In fact he doesn't seem bothered that people buy them and take them away. But something about Neelix has stolen his heart. He adores this little bunny. I told him someone wanted to buy Neelix and he (remember he's just three years old) looked up at me, holding Neelix in his arms, and said "But I don't want to sell Neelix. I thought we were going to keep him forever. Neelix is my bunny. I love him." I know we don't need another mixed breed buck, much less a small one, and we could better use our cage space for better breeding stock... And I suspect that at some point #5 will loose interest in Neelix (likely when Neelix becomes too big for #5 to easily pick up and carry). Despite all of this, I'd rather let him keep Neelix, love on him, cuddle him, sing to him, carry him around the yard, and learn some responsibility. And when he decides that he no longer wants to play with Neelix, it will be a teachable moment. I will involve him in finding a home for Neelix, as that's the responsible thing to do. This will give him something physical to hold on to during the big change from city life to country life, a new home, new patterns, new sights and sounds. Things that will be a little overwhelming for our Aspergian household. To the family that wanted Neelix - I do apologize. I typically do not advertise animals we plan to keep, and I had no intention of keeping Neelix until #5 expressed his concern with having to let him go.

*Note: Yes, #5 calls Neelix his, and we refer to Neelix as belonging to #5, but Neelix will be cared for with the rest of the herd, fed and watered daily by an adult or supervised child, and will not be at the mercy of a three year old for basic care. I'm aware that a three year old isn't capable to shoveling manure, scrubbing cage wires, repairing feed bins, etc. He does enjoy filling Neelix's feed bin and water bottle though (with adult help).

I had a meeting scheduled today for someone to come and look at Lucien and Mittens. I was cautiously optimistic. These are two of the favorite bunnies and I really want for them to find a suitable home... But they are two bucks, and Lucien is just shy of 15 weeks old now - on the cusp of maturity and dominance issues.

The family was really great, it sounds like they have a plan for when they need to be separated, and they have kids who just adored Lucien and Mittens right from the start. I think they will do well with their new family. Congratulations Lucien and Mittens!

Lucien

Mittens

While I was setting up the cages in the front yard to meet the family that adopted Lucien and Mittens, I got a message from another family interested in meeting with another bunny. They came with their eye on Nafertiti, but they decided to adopt Namu-Manu instead.

In a surprise twist, after Lucien and Mittens went off to their home, I decided to stay in the front and see if anyone might stop by if I put up a few ads online. Namu-Manu's new family messaged me and said they'd be back for another bunny. They came back with more kids and picked out two more bunnies. Medusa for themselves, and Nyxx for a friend of their children who's birthday it was (and mom gave permission). Congratulations Namu-Manu, Medusa, and Nyxx!

Namu-Manu

Nyxx

Medusa

So all together, we had FIVE bunnies leave today! Wow! I love it when we can match up that many in a day! Add in the two that went to new homes yesterday and the one the day before - that's eight bunnies into new homes in three days!

​Tomorrow is breeding ​day, so I moved the remaining M and N litter babies to a cage together. Nefertiti, Nardol, Nuri, Maleficent, and Moira are getting along well. Neelix is still with his momma for the time being.

I'm really fighting with myself about Neelix. He's a sweet bunny, so tiny, and #5 just adores him. We don't need another buck, much less a small one. I don't have a spare cage available to keep him, and I'm sure at some point #5 will lose interest in him. I have someone who is/was interested in adopting Neelix, but I have been delaying calling her back. Why am I hesitating? I mean, we can't keep every bunny we breed that is cute or small or that we fall in love with. We just don't have the cages for that many, and they do eat quite a bit of food, which adds up in costs. But for some reason I'm really balking on selling Neelix. Someone talk some sense into me...

​I digress. Breeding day is tomorrow. Gretchen will be paired to George for a meat litter, and Fern will be paired with Fabio for a colorful pet litter. Penelope and Charlotte are due in 11 days or so. They should have the first litters born on the new homestead.

Today marks Tony's last day of work for a while. He's taken all of this next week off to get us all packed and moved (since I've had no luck motivating kids to help with packing). The sooner we get packed, the sooner we get moved. It's crunch time now. The plan is to be completely packed up and moved to the new house by Thursday... We shall see how that goes. I think Tony forgets how much work it is to defuse arguments with a house full of autism. Keeping this one busy without distracting that one, keeping this one on task while that one takes a break, and explaining for the ten millionth time why this one has to to this chore while that one has to do that chore and how despite the fact that one chore is easier than the other, it's fair because the easier chore goes to the younger child. This should be an interesting week.

This afternoon we met a nice family that came to look at Fern's babies. It sounds like they came with their eye on Namu-Manu (because face it, he's gorgeous), but once they sat and played with the bunnies for a while, Nairobi picked their son as her new favorite person and cuddled with him for several minutes. A match was made, and Nairobi went home with her new family. Congratulations Nairobi!

Nairobi

When I came back in the house to update ads and take Nairobi off the website, I got a message from someone else wanting to come pick Kenny up today. Well sure! I finished up my bunny chores, and #4 and I sat in the front yard with Kenny and waited for his ride to arrive. He's such a sweetheart. Twice he tried to climb up to snuggle into my neck. I trimmed his nails while we sat there.

Kenny

We are set to have another family stop by tomorrow afternoon to visit with bunnies and pick one or two. I think they're interested in Lucien and Mittens, but there's a pretty significant size and age difference there. I am hoping to have several of the bunnies out and available for them to look at and handle. As much as I would love to see Lucien go to a home with kids to love, and for Mittens to be a pet, I also want to set people up for success with their rabbits. Lucien is very mellow, but he's also the smallest buck in the grow-out pen. It may just be that he's got nobody smaller to assert dominance over. And Mittens, missing most of his claws and being only six weeks old, wouldn't last long if Lucien decided to be dominant and acted aggressively toward him. I'm fairly certain I could pair them together and they'd do well for a few weeks, but I worry that with the age and size gap, the window of opportunity to separate when things go wrong will be much smaller than normal. And as anyone who's raised rabbits should know - bucks just can't stay together forever unless they're neutered. Anyway, it'll be nice tomorrow to get lots of bunnies out and about for a meet and greet.

I'd love to find homes for Lucien, Kin, Kai, and Lorelei. With Fern and Alice's litters weaned, and four more litters coming up behind them, I need to clean out the grow out pens of bigger bunnies.

We were up bright and early this morning to meet someone with bunnies. They weren't sure if they wanted Nairobi or Nelly, but it was Nelly that got to go to her new home today. Congratulations Nelly!

Nelly

I've been unbelievably sleepy today. I'm not sure why. I worked on packing up the books on one book shelf, filled two boxes, and was exhausted. I only got two loads of laundry done today. I feel like I'm failing at this whole the-sooner-we-pack-the-sooner-we-move thing.

Busy day today! #4 had her dental appointment this morning, and we let the other kids sleep in. When everyone was up and moving, we went to the local zoo. They have some new exhibits this year, including my new favorite - a sloth bear that looks just like my brother's old dog Mowgli, and makes adorable noises. We also got to see a white tiger (new to the zoo) and got this cute photo. This South American porcupine has fallen asleep sitting on a branch with his hands in the food dish. This was too cute to miss.

South American Porcupine at Safari North zoo in Brainerd.

After the zoo we stopped back and home to pack up the car and I did rabbit chores. While gathering the plants to go to the new house (German thyme, lemon thyme, purple basil, and catnip) I picked the one ripe tomato. This is the second ripe tomato of the year! It wasn't anything special to eat. Probably not one I'd plant again next year.

We picked up the cake, changed plans, and ran out to my parents' house for an early dinner and cake, and then headed out to the new house.

I'm not really sure why we made the 40 minute drive out to the new house just to open presents and then drive 40 minutes back again. I think we just like being out there. I dropped off the plants, a couple boxes, put the slinky on one of the shepherd hooks, and checked out the border gardens a little closer.

The border gardens appear sparse for the most part because they're pretty much all gravel underneath a few years of composted leaves. I'm not sure if we will dig out the gravel and add soil, or if we will put down cardboard and add soil and manure on top of it. If we do the latter, we may need to invest in bricks to be a border for the now deeper/raised beds. Tony wants to look at them before deciding. Sure wish he'd have taken a look at them today so I don't have to wait to make plans until next time we go out and then wait again to bring any supplies I might need.

For now I'm going to assume it will be best to just build new soil with the cardboard and soil method. This was the plan to build the gardens on the rest of the property as well (with mulch on top to keep weeds out). It shouldn't be too hard to get this set up. It's just time and labor intensive. I can have Tony pick up some soil and mulch before our next trip out, and we can use the moving boxes for the cardboard, since we won't be needing them once we unpack.

Whatever this type of flower is, it's blooming in all shades from white to pink to purple all over the property!

I'm still hoping that if we can get the border gardens amended soon after we move in, I could potentially plant beans and peas and have a late-season harvest yet this year. My parents might have some trellis pieces left over from their deck that we could use to grow beans/peas on. We will have to wait and see. Bush beans could also be an option if a trellis isn't available for us this year. Then unpacking and lots of plans for next year's garden! We have lots of land and innumerable options on what to put and where. The possibilities are nearly endless!

Now I'm dreaming of gardens full of peppers, tomatoes, asparagus, peas, beans, cucumbers, squash, zucchini, potatoes, rhubarb, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, apples, grapes, corn, and on and on... All the home-grown yummy goodies that we can eat fresh from the garden or preserve for later!

Today we finalized all the last minute plans for a birthday party (for #3) tomorrow. Cake is ordered, presents bought and wrapped, and a friend invited. Big day tomorrow. First #4 has a dental appointment right away early in the morning, followed by a family trip to the zoo. A break for lunch and packing up the car, and then it's off to the new house again for the party. It's so nice to have that big yard where kids can run and play and get their exercise, run off their sugar rush from cake and pop, get away from each other if they need to, and get worn out. I'm so looking forward to moving out there permanently. We're still packing now, but Tony took all of next week off, so hopefully we can get moving soon!

Today while admiring Snowflake's babies, I noticed two seem to be getting darker spots on their noses and ears. Is it possible? Perhaps they're going to be pointed like George! These will be the first pointed kits we've ever produced, so I'm going to be watching closely to see if more color develops, or if it's just wishful thinking.

Snowflake's kit, 19 days old - is that the beginnings of a nose mark?

I was hoping we could cram the tiller, a shovel, a big bag of rabbit manure, and some of the plants in for the trip out tomorrow so I might be able to get started fixing up the border gardens, but it's looking like the car may already be full between kids, a cooler full of pop, a cake, a couple presents, and a few more boxes we've packed up since the last time we went out there. I'm just itching to get gardening! There's so much to do!!

I took a lot of photos today so please bear with me as I share some with you through my blog.

The photo of Lorelei on the Rabbits page has been a picture snapped while she was sitting in the potty corner (not a lovely background), but she doesn't always sit still for photos. I got a halfway decent one tonight that I will be updating as her photo on the Rabbits page. Perhaps a nicer background will facilitate finding her a home.

Lorelei (with Lilith and Kaelyn)

I also noticed that all the photos I've been taking of Lucien show that he is mostly red, but none are of an angle to show that he also does have faint harlequin markings. I was finally able to snap a photo of Lucien from the side to show off his light grey marks.

Lucien has grey markings

And who can pass up cute group photos? I just love the buck grow-out pen right now. Between the five bucks in there, they have a lot of color. They're so beautiful all mixed together (and still living peacefully at 14 weeks old - knock on wood).

Kin, Kenny, and Lucien. Sometimes I wonder if they have a contest going with the doe grow-out pen to see who can get hay in their water the fastest.

I know its been a while since I updated the photos of Alice's litter too, so I couldn't leave them out. Tonight when I went to tarp up the cages (we are expecting rain tonight), they were all cuddling right at the front of the cage.

Maleficent and her momma. Just two days left until these babies will be ready to leave!

And of course, we can't forget the spotted girls. It's hard to tell in their original pictures how different their colors are. Moira is a broken tricolor but her spots blend in (they aren't bold distinct spots of black). Medusa is a broken red, so next to her sister she almost looks orange.

Moira (left) and Medusa (right)

Mister Mittens was hanging out behind the feeder and didn't seem to want to hang out at first. I reached in and petted him for a while and then he swapped places with Maleficent, taking his place up front by his momma. I tried to take a close up of his face and his foot. It turned out blurry because he was wiggling his nose.

Mittens - aside from the lack of visible claws, you wouldn't know he was missing all of his toes!

And since I was photographing baby bunnies, I decided to go peek at Feather's litter too. That little runt is still keeping up with it's siblings somehow. I was sure the little thing wouldn't make it. But the runt has yet more surprises for us! He or she has wavy fur. It reminds me of Mabel (our Rex cat). It's not a Rex bunny - it's not fluffy like that, but because this is a breed back to Sushi (who is also the father of the mother of this litter), perhaps it would indicate that there is some sort of Rex gene in Sushi's background. I had considered this as a possibility given his body shape and color. Perhaps to test the theory the next time it's Elizabeth's turn to breed we can pair her to Sushi. The babies will come out plain, but perhaps some will be Rex coated.

Runt from Feather's litter

Feather's litter is the O-litter, so I've got to come up with eight names that start with O. I've got lots of ideas, but I need to figure out gender first. So far the only kit with a name is Olive.

Olive

Olive got her name due to a unique feature on her coat. She appears to be the only kit with her cheek mark on her left side (two other have their spot on the right cheek). But more interestingly, Olive is a broken tri-color, as evidenced by the one and only spot of black in her entire coat - one dot on her right side. When I first saw this when she was tiny, I hoped she'd be a girl so I could call her Olive. I checked today and she does indeed appear to be a doe - so Olive she is.

Olive's one black spot

As I was going through and re-filling water dishes for the third time, just before putting the tarps up for the night, I met the strangest bumblebee. I think there may have been something wrong with it as it kept flying erratically and doing this charge and slow-down pattern as he/she went along. It followed me along three hutches as I put tarps down. It let me get close enough to take photos and didn't seem to mind my paparazzi photo session. My eyes have gone bad for the night, and I don't usually stare at bumblebees this closely, but this bee looks funny to me. Anyone else?

***(edited to add - this is not a bumblebee. This is a tree squirrel bot fly. A friend of mine properly identified it when I posted the photo on social media. I did some research and it seems this species has a strong preference for squirrels and chipmunks and rarely strays to other hosts. I'm really hoping my bunnies are safe following his (or her) visit today)***

Tree Squirrel Bot Fly (not a bumblebee)... Note the lack of antennae and the ridges between the wings.

Last stop for today was to check in with the back garden. We leave the back garden to it's own devices. It's largely overgrown with raspberries, strawberries, random flowers, and lots of grass and weeds, with a couple odd tree-type plants filling in space. If I didn't know where to look, I'd have completely missed the day lily that is currently blooming. Again, it's a weird coral color. It came from my parents' house and they have orange day lilies and yellow day lilies. This must be some kind of seed-born hybrid. It's pretty. I may have to dig it out and bring it with to the new house/

Coral colored day lily

We had some black-eyed Susan flowers come up with a seed mix a few years ago, but then I over-harvested seeds, and only one plant came up last year. From that one plant I made sure to shake out all the seeds right into the garden in hopes of having a bountiful supply of them this year. The bugs seem to like them. Anyway, we have a whole bush of them this year, all coming out of roughly the same space. They are bright and cheerful though. These will probably stay for the next occupant of this home to enjoy (or mow, or ignore - either way).

Black-Eyed Susan flowers

And last, but not least, growing right at the bottom of the steps to the house are my favorite purple flowers. These are geraniums. They showed up several years ago, likely dropped by a bird since I'd never seen them in the area before. Of course, as they are good at, they've spread more and more every year. Someone told me I should rip them out because they're poisonous. They're so pretty though, and they come back every year. I'm not sure if they're a perennial or just really good at re-seeding themselves in the same places. Either way, I hope to collect some seeds or a plant or two to bring along to the new house. Perhaps we could use a few of these to fill in some space in the border gardens in the places I don't want to grow food. It won't be a problem if it spreads, as I can either transplant it back into the bed, or into another area, or just mow over any that come up in the lawn.

Geranium

I've been doing a lot of thinking about permaculture, companion planting, and where I want things. I want an asparagus bed with strawberries, but I'm not sure where it'll go yet. I want a whole bunch of rhubarb, and I want to grow horseradish, despite the fact that I don't eat it (it's sell-able though). I found one sad little rhubarb plant behind the quonset at the new house. Poor plant is languishing in heavy shade. I was thinking I could plant rhubarb along the west side of the quonset where it should get summer sun from about 11am until nearly nightfall. It will also get all the water that runs off the quonset during rain storms. Perhaps we could plant mint in containers between the rhubarb plants to help keep mice out of the building. I want to put catnip and thyme and basil near the side door that is heavily shaded in the afternoon and evening, creating a mosquito haven.

I removed the nest box from Snowflake's cage. All nine of her little ones were hiding behind it. If they don't want to use it anymore, I'll take it out to give them more space to move around. Caduci Mook's three are still out and about. I'll probably take their nest box out tomorrow. With just three kits, I'm not so worried about space yet. They still have up ears for now, but I suspect they'll all have floppy ears soon enough.

Caduci Mook's babies, 16 days old

Elizabeth lost another kit today. It was fat and healthy looking. Nose, eyes, mouth, and bottom are all clean and kit was obviously well fed. I'm baffled. It doesn't look like it was distressed at all. Looks like it fell asleep in the corner of the nest box and died. Into the freezer it went.

I was in contact with the guy who trades fresh eggs for our rabbit losses and it sounds like we can make another swap once we're moved in to the new house. Yay! Start our new home with fresh eggs!

We didn't make it back out to the new house today. I did snap a cute photo in the buck grow-out cage with all five boys around the water dish. Just a bunch of guys hanging out at the water cooler...

Front left is Kai (broken brown), back left is Kenny (black), back center is Kin (broken brown), back right is Kevin (you can only see his ears), and front right is Lucien (red).

Kevin is staying with us, but the other four are all ready to go to their new homes. Just $20 each (or a pair for $30) if anyone is interested. This is the sweetest bunch of bucks we've had in a long time. They're all good candidates for a pet. Especially Lucien and Kenny... They'd sit in your lap for hours while to pet them. They'd be great for a little kid or someone who needs an emotional support bunny or to use them as a therapy animal to go to schools or nursing homes or something.

​Just four days left until Fern and Alice's bunnies will be ready for their new homes. Tonight while I was divvying up watermelon rind, I noticed that all of Snowflake's kits were out of the nest box and hopping around. It's good to see them doing well. Eight more days until the second round of breeding. This round will be Fern and Gretchen. I guess I better decide which buck to pair each of them to. I was thinking George for Gretchen, and either Sushi or Fabio for Fern. I guess we'll see how I feel about it closer to breeding day.

​Dinner out at my parents' house tonight. We had grilled chicken and some re-heated pulled pork with a chicken pasta salad. Yum! I do love our weekly dinners. I'm not sure we can still do them when we move so far away. It would take 45 minutes to drive each way. Maybe we can start inviting my parents out to the new house and we can prepare dinner. If we can afford it. I'm getting pretty good at adding potatoes and onions to things to make it go farther, and of using rice frequently as a filler too. We snag the bones when family has ham or whole chicken - or the turkey carcass from Thanksgiving to boil down and make soup or stew. Waste-not, want-not, right?

My mind has still been wandering about things to plant in those border gardens around the perimeter of the new house. Hostas on the North side that's always in shade... just add them as I can find or trade for them I guess. But the other space? Maybe transplant some day lilies around the north side of the screen porch, and herbs on the other two sides? I want to avoid annual flowers that will need to be replaced every year and provide no food. I wonder if we could put some kind of mini trellis along the edge of the house and grow beans or peas right up the walls. Rhubarb is always an option too. Would it be horrible to plant catnip and mint and let it spread in the border spaces and just mow whatever seeds out into the yard? I would love an entire section of just a mix of thyme, rosemary, basil, and sage. Perhaps that's what I can plant along one side. Any idea if those plants will grow better on the east or west side of the house? Sunrise or sunset? Or I could also pull up the space on the south side of the house - the only side that does not have a little border garden - and plant the little herb garden right there below the kitchen window overlooking the lake.

It feels so good to have a home. An actual place that feels like you can put down roots, plan for the future, breathe, laugh, enjoy... rather than a house where you are just getting by and surviving day to day. I'm so excited to move!

We ran out to the new house again today. It's a new experience to have a full yard to see the difference a day makes. Here in town, the back yard is perpetually in shade because we have a giant tree that provides shade, regardless of what time of day it is. In the back where we've gardened previous years, there's only so much time the sun shines directly into the garden because sunrise is behind the garage, and the neighbor's tree blocks out most sunlight past 3pm or so. We've been going to the new house exclusively in the afternoons and evenings, so we always see the sun on the west side of the house, leaving the east side in shade (and mosquitoes). Today we were out there earlier, around noon, and what a difference it makes! Places that are full of sun in the evenings are fully in shade in the mornings, and vice-versa on the other side of the house! I know this sounds like a ridiculous thing to be excited over, but it's all new to me. My parents live in a heavily wooded area, so even in their yard it's not always clear where and when the sun shines and for how long. This will add to the discussion of what to plant where.

The new house has little edge garden spaces along most of the perimeter of the house. That said it's clear that they have not been maintained in many years. Some are growing weeds, others moss, and some are so compacted that even the weeds struggle to get a good root in.

The big plan for these spaces? Well, I have options. I can dig up / till the areas, add in some fertilizer, and plant something in there. Or I could cover it with cardboard to smother out the existing weeds and moss (which I'd honestly probably just move elsewhere - I love moss), then add soil and fertilizer and plant in a heap (kind of like a Back-To-Eden style on a miniature level). I could plant some herbs around the edges... Thyme, basil, sage, rosemary, catnip, mint... Or I could transplant some of the beautiful day lilies that are overtaking the cistern cover and spilling into the yard out of the raised bed area.

Double petals on the orange day lilies at the new house.

Maybe we could do some of the border gardens with perennial foods. Rhubarb, or grapes, maybe something else. I like hostas too but last I checked they were $10 and up at the local store, and they aren't edible. Maybe I can barter someone locally for some hostas in the spring when people typically are splitting them up. They will at least fill space, and their flowers will be good for insects and hummingbirds.

Among the things we brought to the new house today were both of my bird feeders and the shepherd hooks. My mom picked up some bird seed on her way to bring out the new mattresses, so I was able to fill both feeders. We didn't have any feathered visitors to the feeders right away, but we only stayed a while after we set them up. I'm hoping that by filling them to the brim and leaving them there, we will have some "regulars" by the time we go back with the next load.

When we got home, I tended my odd little bucket garden. I got a few more plants re-potted into buckets. I need more buckets. It's going to be a really small harvest this year, and I'm worried we won't have enough food... but at least we will have a good start (with dirt and buckets) for next year.

While checking on the two tomatoes that are turning colors, the biggest Indigo Ruby F1 tomato fell off into my hand. Right off, no stem... I didn't think it was quite ready to pick, but the plant decided otherwise. Looking at the photo on the tag it looks like it should be redder.

I was up early this morning and couldn't get back to sleep. I decided to go do bunny chores. I got everyone watered, then I went to check on the back garden and the plants in buckets. When I came back around the bunny barn there was a commotion at the end of the barn just underneath the tarp at the end. I peeked around the corner to find the latest stray bunny, struggling to balance on the edge wall piece beside Hodor's cage. It was quick and easy to reach out and grab the bunny. Quick gender check (no surprise, it's another black buck) and I put him into one of my bigger travel cages. Gave him some hay and water, set him up with some old feed bags as a roof and sides in case it rains, and carried on with my outside chores. I have been calling him "Little Black" since I wasn't sure if he was a buck or a doe until I caught him today.

"Little Black" the newer stray bunny that's been hanging around.

Little Black has been hanging around for a while now. It seems that in the absence of Loosey (the previous stray black rabbit that plagued our rabbits), he took to eating the food under the cages and using the bunny barn to hide from storms. Being a responsible person, I've put ads out to try to find his owner, but I am pretty safe betting that he was abandoned and nobody is looking for him. At the very least, Moose won't chase him through the neighborhood anymore. I'm not sure what we will do with him. I don't need another buck, much less a small one of unknown breed. Hopefully I can find him a home when no owner comes forward.

​Miss Elsa continues to escalate with her aggression. I have to poke a stick through the opposite side of the cage to distract her (she likes to chew on it, I don't use it to poke or harass her) to reach in long enough to put her food in. Even then sometimes it takes several minutes and multiple attempts. She is in a cage with bars smaller than the other cages to prevent anyone from sticking fingers in and getting them bit off (because at this point, I wouldn't trust Elsa not to chomp fingers clean off in her rage). She is also housed away from most of the other bunnies. Don't get me wrong, I do like Elsa. She was a sweetheart for a while, and I remember fondly the face rubs and snuggles we shared. But she arrived here as a rescue due to her aggression, and it's become obvious that she can't handle change, so finding her a new home is out of the question. Unfortunately, she is also not safe to keep. Miss Elsa will be heading to "freezer camp" as my fellow homesteaders call it. I just have to work up to it. She will be the first bunny I've had to slaughter that we have named and loved and kept for any significant amount of time. In the meantime, I will continue to walk a tightrope to make sure she has food and water every day, that she has fresh hay, and that she is comfortable in her pen. As other fellow homesteaders also say - the life of an animal should be all happy, with just one bad day. I'm sad to think that Elsa's one bad day will be coming all too soon. I owe it to her to give her a swift end after giving her a good life. I hope she remembers those cuddles and face rubs too.

Elsa

Miss Elizabeth is adjusting to the new housing well. All nine of her kits are doing well. Feather's eight are keeping up their growth. Even that little runt, though a little thin, is still doing well. Today all three of Caduci Mook's kits were out of the nest box and hobbling around the cage. They are absolutely adorable. I wish I'd snapped a photo of them, but they don't tend to hold still unless I'm holding them, and then it's harder to get a group photo. Looks like there are two bucks and a doe, or possibly three bucks. It's difficult to determine on the broken brown kit.

It's hard to believe that Fern and Alice's kits will be ready to go in just six more days. They really do grow up fast. Mittens is completely healed up and unless you're looking for his bad feet, you wouldn't noticed his missing toes just watching him hop around. He does remain the runt of his litter though.

I also snapped a new photo of Jensen. He's four months old already. I'm surprised he hasn't found a home yet. Now he's practically old enough to be a breeder. Like I said before though, I don't need another buck right now. He's a sweet boy though.

Jensen

We are hoping to make another run out to the house tomorrow. My parents, being the awesome supportive people they are, are buying new mattresses for all of the kids when we move. Largely because of the lingering odor from the septic back-up. We will be swapping beds around due to the room constraints, so new mattresses will be a welcome comfort in the new house.

​The bunk beds currently in the boys' room will be going into the room for #1 and #3. The bunk beds in the girls' room will be split up and one will become #4's bed, and the other will be #2's bed. Then my parents are hoping to find a trundle bed for #5 that can slide under #2's new bed to save room in a small space. If they can't find one, I'm kind of hoping maybe my dad will just build one... because how cool would that be to have a hand-crafted bed from Grandpa??

Tony has this weekend off, so hopefully we can get a lot done.

We are hoping to put up bird feeders, bird houses, and bat houses at the new house to attract birds and bats that may cut down on the insect population. Being on the lake means a lot of mosquitoes, and horseflies. If we can remember to bring a couple screws and the drill, maybe we can hang up the bat house that I got for Christmas and already brought over to the new house. It says 10-15 feet up on a South facing building or tree. I think we're going to put it up either in a tree or behind the garage. I think the plan is to buy more as we have the ability so we can have several.

Maybe we can remember to bring the bird feeders and shepherd hooks along, pick up some seed on the way, and set up the bird feeders to start attracting birds before we even move in. Maybe a slinky too. Despite not seeing any squirrels on our visits, I'm sure food will attract unwanted hungry friends.

I also have to figure out what I'm going to do about the rodent problem at the new house. I've found mouse nests in both out-buildings, and the house has Irish Spring soap stuffed in funny places. I can't have mice infesting my bunny barn. So do I invest in a trio of barn cats that may eventually cause problems when I decide to get ducks or chickens? Or do I get some chickens - that I'm told will catch and eat mice - despite not having a proper set up for them and not wanting them to eat my garden? Though cats might poop in my garden - making my organic soil into a nasty mess. I also have to keep in mind that both cats and chickens are likely to kill any rabbit kits that somehow find themselves on the wrong side of the wire. I wonder how other homestead folks deal with mice. I know you can get a terrier dog, but I'm sure that's a bad idea when it comes down to keeping other small livestock (rabbits, chickens, ducks, etc.). Any ideas? Send me an email and let me know how you take care of mouse problems in your barns! I'm sure Mabel will make quick work of any that venture into the house. She's a wonderful mouser. But she is also strictly an indoor only cat.

I got some of the bunnies swapped into new cages. Elizabeth lost one of her kits sometime last night. We're not sure what happened. They were all alive and well yesterday, and she's been feeding them well. Anyway, the R litter is down to nine now, and have been moved to another cage that will better allow the babies to maneuver outside of the nest box. Momma Elizabeth isn't too sure about it yet, but we left her alone for the rest of the day to try to settle in. I have warned #4 that if she's too stressed out she may kill her babies. We're hoping that's not the case. I even cleaned out the cage to make sure it was nice for her. Fresh hay, full water, and pellet feed. She is now housed right next to Feather and her litter of eight.

Tomorrow I need to text the person I swapped frozen rabbit kits for eggs last time. The kids loved the eggs, which we are now out of, but we're up to ten kits in the freezer (all natural losses - we don't kill them to put in the freezer).

It's been a warm day. Indoor temperature reached 82 and is slow to lower. Fans are going and windows are open, but there's no breeze to help.

I managed to get five of the rabbit cages cleaned out. And by that I mean using the hose to break up any blockages from the hay matting up potty spots, washing out the nest boxes of bunny poop, taking out stale hay, cleaning up the water dishes, and in one case cleaning up the golf ball toy that rolled into the potty corner. It feels good to make progress, though we're still struggling with packing. The kids just want to leave to the new house, but Tony insists we have to have everything packed and cleaned before we can move out. I think he knows that if we move, whatever gets left behind isn't worth coming back for. I would be the first to admit that I'd be content to leave almost everything behind. Bring along the seed collection, the kids' bikes, the playset, the animals, what furniture we have left, the framework that will become a greenhouse, enough clothes that we aren't going naked... So much of what we've collected over the years isn't something we need to bring along.

So I have boxes and bags and containers of kids' clothes that either don't fit the kids anymore, or they don't like the hand-me-downs from their older sibling if they do fit. I've got all kinds of knick-knacks, antiques, art pieces, craft stuff, and random "stuff" stashed away in the closets and garage. Since our two day yard sale last month was a bust, I have no idea what to do with it now. It was all supposed to be sold on eBay or Craigslist, used as barter goods to get other things we need... So I hate to just throw it all away, and I know that a large percentage of things donated to local charities get thrown out too. I've considered new projects. Using shirts to make pillows, using little baby dresses, shirts, and pants to make purses, or cutting them up for fabric for other projects (cat and dog toys, doll blankets and doll pillows, sock bags, clothespin holders for the laundry line, heat packs, ice packs, etc.). Then I could store them in the quonset with the bunnies and not have to worry about if they smell like bunny after a while. I can just wash the piece(s) I need at any given time and use them for the project I need them for. But then again, is Tony going to want to move hoards of "stuff" that we really don't "need" at the new house? Hmmmm. My artsy-fartsy mind if playing games with me. I don't need tons of stuff, but it sure does come in useful when I have a project idea and need supplies!

I was looking at Elizabeth's litter this afternoon and discovered something a little strange. A kit with a heart on it's face. While this is adorable and kind of unique, what seems really strange to me is that Elizabeth had a litter last year with a different buck (the father of the buck she was paired to this time), and had one kit with a heart on his face as well. How very interesting!

Yet unnamed bunny from Elizabeth's 2017 litter

"Evan" the bunny from Elizabeth's 2016 litter

I got a few more plants moved into buckets today before I ran out of dirt again. This is becoming a fairly expensive project in soil and bucket costs. Hopefully with a little manure added every year I can re-use this soil for a while. It will be a small miracle if these plants produce anything this year. This late start is really a problem. Hopefully we can get through this meager winter on rice and sandwiches, and next year we can get our garden started a lot earlier! It will also give me more time to get more five gallon buckets and wean out the 2-3 gallon buckets - or use them for herbs and such. Tomatoes, peppers, okra, and eggplant really should be in a five gallon bucket though.

Moose is loving being able to get up on the bed. He was never allowed up on the bed before, but now when Tony is off at work, I often let him up onto the bed when the kids and I are watching something on Netflix, or if tony works an early shift and I'm still in bed after he leaves.

Moose, sleeping on the bed while we watch Netflix

We are now officially on the lookout for a couple of barn cats to keep the mice out of the bunny barn. If anyone knows of any bar cats in the Brainerd, Pillager, Motley, or Staples areas... We are looking for two spayed female cats, proven mousers, for permanent outdoor living. Cats will have access to the bunny barn and will be provided with food and water daily, as well as vet care as needed (provided they aren't completely feral). I'd prefer a calico or two - but can't be terribly picky, since they're going to be out in the bunny barn anyway.

I'm also on the look-out for a canoe or paddle-boat, 5-gallon buckets, bird feeders, bird houses, and bat houses if anyone has some they'd like to donate or barter for (we have rabbits to trade).

We ran out to the new house today to check for storm damage. Nothing noteworthy, but it gave us an excuse to go back there again. We brought a few more things along, I put up the wooden butterfly wind chimes, and the kids explored the property.

There's a massive black walnut tree at the very edge of the lake. It's overgrown with grapevines and various weeds, but we made a path to it, pulled out all of the dead branches, and it's a perfect little hide out. The opening to get up into it is on the lake side, and the way the tree branches out leaves the area near the roots open enough to climb in it. Another part off to the side of that is a little hideout in the branches. If it weren't for the major mosquito population, I think it would be an amazing place to sit and read. Granted you really can't see the water from there due to the dense cattails and reeds, but the water is just a few feet from the base of this enormous tree. I suspect this tree was likely there when the house was built in 1905, and is the origination point for all the dozens of other full grown black walnuts throughout the property. We now lovingly refer to it as the "Mother Walnut Tree" - and she will be loved and respected, and likely played in as well.

#3 and #5 in the Mother Walnut Tree

We also saw some birds on the lake, but they were too far away to identify. It looked like a family group, and I know there's a breeding pair of swans in the area. Perhaps these were them?

Family of waterfowl on the lake. You can see some free-floating bogs in the background.

And now that Moose has discovered the water, and splashed around in it, #5 is begging us to somehow buy a boat. I don't think she understands just how expensive boats are. If anyone has a canoe or paddleboat that is "seaworthy" and won't sink - we're interested in barter to get one! We don't have much of value to trade, but hopefully someone out there might have one they don't particularly want anymore. We have plenty of bunnies we could trade for...

And speaking of bunnies, Feather and Elizabeth's litters have eyes open now (or most of them anyway). One from Caduci Mook's litter has eyes open today. I didn't check in with Snowflake's litter today, but I'm sure they're about at the same point. The kids are very excited. They get to handle the kits starting when their eyes open. #4 spent quite a while delighting over the "popcorning" her litter was doing. She's going to love playing with them all.

​Since Elizabeth is a purebred Rex she asked me if any of her babies would also be rex. I had to inform her that Rex coat is a recessive genetic, and unless you have a rex buck or a rex carrier, you won't get any rex babies. Then she was convinced she needs to keep back a buck from this litter to breed back so she can have rex coated kits. I tried to explain to her the cost involved in raising a kit to adulthood for breeding, taking up cage space, and the fact that even then she'd only get half rex coats. Then I told her the average price for a purebred rex around here is $35. The smallest cage that I would allow her to keep a rabbit in is available at the local feed store for $26. Add in two bowls from the dollar store for food and water, and you've got a grand total of $63 as a bare minimum to get a new buck for her doe. Now, in her defence, just two kits will pay for that buck and new cage if she's successful in breeding them. But if she gets a young buck, she won't be set to breed until next spring or possibly later. Who's going to pay for all that food? If she can't breed them, she's not making any money, and therefore she can't afford to feed her new bunny... She's going to ask grandma and grandpa if she can do jobs for them to earn $63 so she can buy herself a Rex buck and cage. She's adorable, but we will see how dedicated she is with this. I have a sneaking suspicion that she will ask for chores and then not do them because she will lose motivation. But if she keeps up with it, perhaps we will be getting a new buck in the herd.

#4 admiring the Siberian Pea Shrub bushes in the backyard.

I had to share photos with a plant identification group on Facebook to get an ID on this plant, but it looks like they are Siberian Pea Shrubs, growing in an untidy thicket-row at the back corner of the house. Apparently the bean-shaped seed pods are edible when cooked, as are the dry beans, again cooked like dried beans of regular variety. It is considered a survival food. A wonderful addition to our homestead!

I have started cleaning the rocks from the turtle tank and aquaponics bed. I rinse them in a bucket with holes in the bottom, then soak them in vinegar water, before rinsing them again until they are completely free of vinegar smell. So far I've only gotten about a quarter of a five gallon bucket done. I have three five gallon buckets full to do. But hey, when we get into the new house it'll be nice to be able to set up the turtle tank and the aquaponics tank without worrying about bringing anything in from the previous uses. I will be putting the (freshly sanitized) aquaponics set up on the fish tank instead of the turtle tank. While it really helped keep Minnow's tank clean, it was kind of a waste of space because we couldn't eat what was growing (due to turtles potentially carrying salmonella which could be in the water and thus in the lettuce and other plants). Since the fish tank is pretty much chemical-free and has been for many years, it should be safe to use. It also has a very strong beneficial bacteria colony taking care of the waste, which will help convert the solid fish waste to the chemical version that is consumable by the plants as fertilizer. I'm very much looking forward to growing food indoors all year round.

Bunnies are surviving the heat well. Despite it hitting 92 today, everyone is still alive and well. No heat stroke yet. Elizabeth's ten babies were scattered throughout the extra large nest box, leisurely lounging in adorable positions to avoid extra body heat.

​Feather's litter (half of whom have eyes open today) were piled out in the open part of the cage. I think it was too warm in the nest box since I added a bunch of hay for Feather yesterday. So I cleaned it out and put the babies back in.

I managed to get some more plants transplanted from nursery containers to buckets. Three really sad looking Banana Supreme peppers, and the last two Satin Beauty eggplants went into buckets.

I managed to wrap up that project just as the big storm was rolling in. Admittedly it wasn't nearly as big and bad as the warnings had me worried about. We were warned about quarter-sized hail and wind gusts up to 65 miles an hour. We didn't see any hail, and while it did get windy briefly, it was nothing to be terribly worried about. Just rain. Once the storm passed us the weather warning increased to half-dollar sized hail and 70 mph wind gusts for the cities next to be caught in the storm. Brainerd Bubble* again I suppose. I think we will miss that when we move. It will be interesting to go back to the new house after this storm (which also went over that property) to see if there's any damage.

It did drop the temperature from 92 to 68 in less than an hour.

My apologies to fellow arachnophobes - I found a big spider while I was tarping up the hutches in anticipation of the approaching rainstorm. I believe it's a cat head spider. We've had them around the house before. As long as they're not near me or indoors, I leave them alone. They're great at taking down the insect population. That said, I'm an arachnophobe, so I left this one be after snapping a quick photo. I'm sure the poor thing has been knocked out of the area by all the rain, but hopefully he (or she) comes back and eats some flies and mosquitoes for us. Warning - Spider photo below!!

Big spider making a web between the rabbit hutches... It's about the size of the last knuckle to the tip of my thumb.

*The Brainerd Bubble, for those who don't know, is a strange weather phenomenon. Bad storms will come along, and mysteriously break apart as though there is a bubble over Brainerd, often re-forming once they're past Brainerd. We do get rain and snow, but not usually to the extremes of the areas just outside of Brainerd. My parents live a few miles outside of Brainerd, and when big storms come, they tend to have trees down and potential damage to vehicles and belongings. Those same storms will rain here, but we won't lose a tree or have any property damage. When we do get bad storms (once in a great while) they tend to shift direction to just glance us instead of hitting us full force. It's weird. Watching the weather radar throughout storms you can actually see it break and go around Brainerd or shift direction to leave Brainerd just skirting the storm - not just once in awhile, but almost every storm. I have yet to find anyone who can explain to me why this happens. It's so widely accepted that last year on Father's Day we were out to dinner with my brother and my dad and all of the kids. The tornado alarm sounded, followed by everyone's cell phones going off to alert them to the tornado warning... Everyone (the restaurant was packed) looked at their phones, glanced outside, and went back to eating. Of course sometimes there are freak storms that do hit us full force in Brainerd, and they're rare, so they often catch us unaware. A couple years ago we had a bad storm come through that just destroyed massive swatches of land. Straight line winds that may or may not have spawned several small twisters... Many of the trees out at my parent's house were twisted and broken off, all about 50 feet up. Some of the local resorts had to have disaster relief crews come in to help clean up. And last year we had a real bad snow storm that shut down traffic for one evening (which is pretty significant for us Minnesotans). But really, the Brainerd Bubble protects us most of the time from the worst storms. Moving out to the new property means no more Brainerd Bubble to shelter us.